Nothing That Lives is Still
NOTHING THAT LIVES IS STILL
There is rhythm and pulse
to life everywhere, all the time.
The cat asleep in the sunny window
is not carved from stone,
the guy sleeping in a doorway
wrapped in last week’s news
merely looks dead.
Only photographs bring stillness.
Photos of the dead even more so.
All that remains
is the standing around,
reacting to them.
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©2013 Christopher Reilley
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I suppose the fact that the newspapers are still on his body and haven't blown away or disintegrated suggests that he's still alive...
ReplyDeleteWell done, Chris!
-David [ben Alexander]
Thank you sir.
DeleteSomething about "wrapped in last week's news" really strikes me. I feel we all are, especially in today's world, if only metaphorically. Even as we propel forward in all that "rhythm and pulse." Love this.
ReplyDeleteI am struck with this line: Only photographs bring stillness. And death.
ReplyDeleteLife is really a blur of events and motions.
You have made me think of different levels of stillness, and how we perceive them, and whether anything is ever truly still. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteI love the cat asleep in the sunny window! There is so much life everywhere, when we take the time to notice it. I especially love the "rhythm and pulse." That captures it so well.
ReplyDeleteTo bad there's nothing wild in that stillness.
ReplyDeleteThis cuts to the quick (Kerfe--blogger will no longer let me sign in for some reason)
ReplyDeleteSome serious stillness you have conjured up here, Christopher!
ReplyDeleteI wonder about the rhythm in the artist of thge photograph? In the earth accepting the dead?
ReplyDelete